Published Works
In New Orleans we brought life to life, forging harmony with already living things.
Doesn't that sound like jazz?
The legacy of Black New Orleanians was always about knitting our own piece of something from scraps, as can be said in much of the South (and later the North). In New Orleans, when we couldn't have Rex, we made Zulu. When we couldn't have fancy ballrooms, we took our instruments to the streets. When we couldn't rent some vast waterfront property. We drove our cars through mud and dropped our tailgates. We pulled out folding chairs and card tables; butane tanks and cast iron. In New Orleans, we brought life to life, forging harmony with already living things.
Doesn't that sound like jazz? Black memories. And now all the promise and the past is disappearing into the Gulf. But water is the past, the only owner, Removing possession and leaving us with a slick, brown repository of memory.
- Myles Poydras, MFA 2022
Hurricane Katrina Reflection by Myles Poydras 2019
MU Podcast: How a family crabbing trip influenced Myles' life
Hurricane Katrina Reflection by Myles Poydras 2019
‘Often times the bit of solace that comforts me is sitting in isolated in places where the trace of humans and nature are less noticeable. The vitality of the soil still seems present. Much like my experience in the swamp, the buzzing of the natural seems life giving. Looking over the horizon of swallowed land and mossy trees, I can reimagine history. I can draw my own maps and let the waters run wild. Water is my redeeming ethos because it’s the last thing that humans can’t control.’
Sanctuary: Bridges to Cross
MU Podcast: How a family crabbing trip influenced Myles' life
Hurricane Katrina Reflection by Myles Poydras 2019
Myles reads his essay of his return home to New Orleans and discovery of a rust-colored arch bridge in Crescent Park that overlooks the mighty Mississippi River.
MU Podcast: How a family crabbing trip influenced Myles' life
MU Podcast: How a family crabbing trip influenced Myles' life
MU Podcast: How a family crabbing trip influenced Myles' life
Special Projects
Floodlines: an eight-part series podcast miniseries about Hurricane Katrina
Produced March 2020, The Atlantic: Myles contributed to the project and assisted with production.
2021 - 2022 Articles
Going Deep Into Oyster Country
Going Deep Into Oyster Country
Going Deep Into Oyster Country
The New York Times, December 2021: On the marsh-bound causeway to Chincoteague Island on Virginia’s Eastern Shore...
Sanctuary: Bridges to cross
Going Deep Into Oyster Country
Going Deep Into Oyster Country
Miami Herald, July 2022: There’s a rust orange arc set above old train tracks, looping a small bridge that stretches from the Marigny/Bywater neighborhood...
2020 Articles
The Books Briefing: The Artists Who Melodize Our Lives
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The Atlantic, January 2020: There’s more to music than meets the ear: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The Atlantic, January 2020: The journalists who help us contextualize: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The History Behind One of America’s Most Beloved Desserts
The Books Briefing: What’s White and Black and Read All Over?
The History Behind One of America’s Most Beloved Desserts
The Atlantic, January 2020: The origins of the praline candy can be traced back to enslaved black women in Louisiana.
The Books Briefing: On Self-Progress
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The History Behind One of America’s Most Beloved Desserts
The Atlantic, January 2020: New year, new reads: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The Atlantic, February 2020: Remembering and celebrating black history: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Giving Romance a Language
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The Books Briefing: The Uncut History of Black Life
The Atlantic, February 2020: How to write about the feeling that’s hardest to communicate: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: The World Through a Surrealist Lens
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
The Atlantic, March 2020: Strange worlds in strange times: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
The Atlantic, April 2020: A concentration cleanse: Your weekly guide to the best in books
Myles Poydras Suggests Poetry for News-Addled Attention Spans
The Books Briefing: If Your Attention Span Is Shrinking, Read Poetry
Myles Poydras Suggests Poetry for News-Addled Attention Spans
Poetry Foundation, April 2020
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Atlantic, April 2020: Dear faraway friends and lovers: Your weekly guide to the best in books
Books About Kids, for Adults
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Atlantic, May 2020: The changes wrought by children: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Forecasting Reality
The Books Briefing: What Personal Letters Reveal About Human Struggles
The Books Briefing: Forecasting Reality
The Atlantic, May 2020: What’s next: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Pace Yourself
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Books Briefing: Forecasting Reality
The Atlantic, May 2020: The rituals of a routine life: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Atlantic, June 2020: The truth buried beneath the surface: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: A Struggle to Breathe
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Books Briefing: Readjusting Our Understanding of History
The Atlantic, June 2020: Processing pain and racial trauma: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
The Atlantic, July 2020: An omnibus reading list, from classic novels to poems to short stories.
The Books Briefing: The Power of Friendship
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
The Atlantic, July 2020: The influential role of platonic intimacy: Your weekly guide to the best in books
How Will We Remember the Protests?
The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read
How Will We Remember the Protests?
The Atlantic, December 2020: It’s too soon to know which images will become emblematic of the Black Lives Matter demonstrations...
2019 Articles
The Books Briefing: One Small Step That Opened a Lifetime of Wonder
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Atlantic, July 2019: One giant leap for literature: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Atlantic, August 2019: The fractured paths leading away from a homeland: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: America’s Pastime
The Books Briefing: What Happens When You Lose the Place You Come From
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Atlantic, August 2019: Your weekly guide to the best in books will take you out to the ball game.
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Atlantic, September 2019: From the page to the screen, and back: your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: What the Storms Left Behind
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Books Briefing: Remembering Pain on the Page
The Atlantic, September 2019: The Floating World unearths trauma amid natural disaster...
The Books Briefing: Remembering Pain on the Page
The Books Briefing: Where Books and TV Intersect
The Books Briefing: Remembering Pain on the Page
The Atlantic, October 2019: “The art’s existence is beautiful. But it shouldn’t have to exist at all.” Your weekly guide to the best in books.
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Atlantic, November 2019: Examining how we farm, sell, and consume our food: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: How to Build a Family Legacy
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Atlantic, November 2019: Tracking how we got from there to here: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Costume Party
The Books Briefing: Following Food From Field to Market to Plate
The Books Briefing: Costume Party
The Atlantic, November 2019: Witches and werewolves and clowns, oh my! Your weekly guide to the best in books.
The Books Briefing: The Part of Human Nature That Bends Toward Solitude
The Books Briefing: The Part of Human Nature That Bends Toward Solitude
The Books Briefing: The Part of Human Nature That Bends Toward Solitude
The Atlantic, December 2019: A tour of places to be alone: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Books Briefing: Looking Back on Moving Forward
The Books Briefing: The Part of Human Nature That Bends Toward Solitude
The Books Briefing: The Part of Human Nature That Bends Toward Solitude
The Atlantic, December 2019: Historical texts on black progress: Your weekly guide to the best in books
2018 Articles
Exhibition Pick: Ben Depp
Speaking Up: Jerry Takigawa at the New Orleans Photo Alliance
Speaking Up: Jerry Takigawa at the New Orleans Photo Alliance
Pelican Bomb, June 2018
Speaking Up: Jerry Takigawa at the New Orleans Photo Alliance
Speaking Up: Jerry Takigawa at the New Orleans Photo Alliance
Speaking Up: Jerry Takigawa at the New Orleans Photo Alliance
Pelican Bomb, August 2018
Critics’ Picks: “Louisiana Contemporary” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Critics’ Picks: “Louisiana Contemporary” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Critics’ Picks: “Louisiana Contemporary” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Pelican Bomb, September 2018
Eagle Eye: “Birds of a Feather” at Barrister’s Gallery
Critics’ Picks: “Louisiana Contemporary” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Critics’ Picks: “Louisiana Contemporary” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Pelican Bomb, June 2018
2017 Articles
After a decade, Oakland middle schoolers resurrect student newspaper
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
Columbia Missourian, December 2017
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
Columbia Missourian, September 2017
New class on race in America meant to continue MU conversation
African-style hair braiders appeal against Missouri licensing requirement
New class on race in America meant to continue MU conversation
Columbia Missourian, September 2017
2015 Articles
Myles Poydras | St Augustine c/o 2015
Success, the one thing thought to be the central goal in life along with happiness. Everyone has an internal yearning for happiness which can be provided through success. Success in my eyes is to reach your goals or aspirations. Success is to complete what you’ve set out to achieve in life. Success is to capture your dreams which may have seemed distant at once, but now lie only a few steps ahead. I am extremely driven to do well in the world and set an example for my siblings and fellow school members to reach their potential as well.
I attend St. Augustine High School, an all-black, all-male High School located in the Seventh Ward of New Orleans. The school is known to be a training ground for leadership through academic excellence and moral values. At St. Augustine I work hard to achieve scholarships from the best schools, so I can receive the best education to prepare me for life and the business world. St. Augustine being an all-black, all-male school sets a tone for brotherhood and fellowship. I want those after me to look at me as an example of success as I currently look at some former graduates of St. Augustine as a prototype to do well in the world, such as Avery Johnson and Stan Verrett.
Out of school I am an oldest sibling to my younger brother and sister. With my academic success I set the bar high for them to achieve in school. Knowing how essential education is I share prudent knowledge with them and guide them to make the right choices. I display to them the traits of morality and integrity and tell them how far they will take you in the world. I try to help put them in the mindset of being focused on achieving their dreams and letting their aspirations guide them in life.
Success is the ultimate and I will continue to work hard to gain it. I know reaching my lofty goals will be no walk in the park, but I am determined to capture my dreams. I am willing to put in the work and effort to get closer to my aspirations everyday, one step at a time. I am a firm believer in that in life our aspirations should guide us and I will continue to live that out daily. I will display the trait of integrity to set an example for those around me as I wish for the well-being of my peers as I am only a one piece of the puzzle of an amazing world.
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